Classic Concert of the Day: Grim Reaper at First Avenue in Minneapolis on October 20, 1987

It’s a sad fact, but all of our favorite rock stars will one day shuffle off this mortal coil into the great metal festival in the sky. Earlier today, while thinking of the rockers we lost this year, one of the names that came to mind was Grim Reaper’s Steve Grimmett. He was 62 years old.

In 2017, Grimmett had his right leg amputated after an infection spread to the bone. He remained upbeat throughout the process and got fitted with the single most-metal prosthetic limb of all time. And while he went on to sing for multiple bands after Grim Reaper disbanded, he eventually came back to the band under the new name Steve Grimmett’s Grim Reaper.

So to commemorate his life and talent, we’re sharing a 1987 Grim Reaper concert that apparently was shot for Headbanger’s Ball. The band was on the Hell on Wheels Tour, with Helloween as the headliners and Armored Saint also providing support.

Just watching Grimmett in his prime, killing it on the mic and hitting those high notes shows just how underrated he was during the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. Dude had a set of pipes.

Rest in power, Steve Grimmett.

Grim Reaper setlist

Rock You to Hell
Night of the Vampire
Lust for Freedom
Rock Me ’till I Die
Fear No Evil
Dead on Arrival
See You in Hell